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Irishman Jim Connell wrote the song's lyrics in 1889 in Nicholas Donovan's house.[3] There are six stanzas, each followed by the chorus. It is normally sung to the tune of "Lauriger Horatius", better known as the German carol "O Tannenbaum" ("O Christmas Tree"), though Connell had wanted it sung to the tune of a pro-JacobiteRobert Burns anthem, "The White Cockade".[4] The lyrics of the first verse and the chorus, which are the most well-known parts of the song, are as follows:

"The Red Flag" resonated with the early radical workers’ movement in the United States, and it appeared as the first song in the first edition of the Little Red Songbook of the Industrial Workers of the World in 1909. Only five of the six stanzas were printed, omitting the fourth stanza that begins, "It well recalls the triumphs past."[6]

"The Red Flag" has been the British Labour Party's official anthem from its founding; its annual party conference closes with the song. "The Red Flag" was first sung in the House of Commons on August 1, 1945, when Parliament convened after Labour’s defeat of Winston Churchill’s Conservatives.[7] It was sung by Labour MPs on 27 May 1976, allegedly prompting Michael Heseltine to swing the mace above his head.[8] It was also sung on the evening of 28 March 1979 when a motion of no confidence brought down the Labour Government.[9] It was sung again in Parliament in February 2006 to mark the centenary of the Labour Party’s founding. During the Tony Blair years the leadership sought to downplay its role.[1][10]

"The Red Flag" was parodied by singer-songwriterLeon Rosselson as the "Battle Hymn of the New Socialist Party," also known as "The Red Flag Once a Year" or "The People's Flag Is Palest Pink." It is intended to satirise the perceived lack of socialist principles in the Labour Party. The initial parody was widely known in the 1960s, sometimes sung during late night parties at student conferences. It was revived in the early 2000s in response to the centrist reforms associated with Tony Blair.[11] A version which began "The people's flag is palest pink, mum washed it in the kitchen sink" was popular among schoolchildren in the 1950s, which may have inspired Rosselson's version.